Andi Pandi

For those of you that do not know, the lovely lady in this picture with me is my little sister Andrea. She is amazing and if you do not know her you are missing out. To be fair, and I am a middle child so I like to keep the peace, I must mention that I also have an older sister that I will post about at a later date.

In only 16 days I am moving to Chicago and will live in the same city as my sister for the first time since I was 18 and she was 16. Anyone who knew me at 18 knows that I have changed and grown so much since that time. Anyone who knew Andrea knows that she also has changed since she was 16. I am thrilled to have the chance to live in the same city and spend time together as "adults". I know that living near Andrea will encourage me, comfort me, and challenge me to chase after the Lord. I have always admired her for her amazing faith in Christ. Andrea is loyal, generous, funny, and very wise. Many times I forget that she is actually younger than me. When I start to get really worried and panicky about our move I remember that with all the change comes the chance to live life alongside one of my best friends. I cannot wait!

abbey*

The weight of the world and then some...

Tonight we had a bunch of college students in our home for hotdogs (wieners if you prefer) and fellowship. Over the last year we have had our home open to these kids nearly every Monday and some Thursdays. It has been awesome.

Which leads me to the title. My heart is heavy (with what seems like the weight of the world). I love you all. We love you all. Though we are moving on, know that it is not easy. We have so much time, energy, and love invested here with Epoch Ministry. The reality of our move is really setting in this week. It will be really, really hard.

Tonight was a reality check. We are really moving. We are really leaving this house, you, and even Lucy (she was the small one with a bad haircut, in case you were wondering). There is so much emotion tonight.

Please pray for us as we are praying for you.

I raise my glass and my prayers, tonight, to the individuals of Epoch Ministry.

Shaloam.

brandon*

First Post Ever!!

This is my first post ever. I have never blogged for many reasons. One reason is that I think it is very odd and unsettling to have my thoughts posted for anyone who stumbles upon them to read. The other reasons are not worth spending time writing about. Since this blog is to chronicle "our" life in the girl's dorm, here I go.

Tomorrow I start my first day of the last week of my job. I have been surprised at the emotions that I have been having. I have found myself being really sad to say "good-bye" to clients whom I thought I would be pleased to leave behind. I have started to think about how good I have really had it at my job. I do work at home, it doesn't get much better than that. When I start thinking these things I realize that I have this personality trait which causes me to become very idealistic about things when I am leaving them behind. For some reason I rarely remember the bad. My brain automatically eliminates the bad/sad things and only leaves behind the fond memories. I suppose to some extent most everyone does this?

I guess that's good news for anyone who has ticked me off in the last couple of years!
Abbey

i've got a 100% return rate on my missionaries

Last night we returned from our week long mission-adventure to Parmelee, SD. It was one of the hardest, yet one of the best trips I have ever been on. I return a changed man.

I left on this trip less than enthused. Due to two past experiences at Parmelee, I admit that I was struggling to find love in my heart for this place and these people. I perceived the children to be rude, disrespectful, and vulgar.

Well, I was way wrong about the children of Parmelee. They weren't rude, disrespectful, and vulgar...they were rude, disrespectful, vulgar, and VIOLENT... and I fell in love. This was yet another example of answered prayer. I spent a fair amount of time in prayer leading up to this trip and one of the things that I continually prayed for was that God might break my heart for Parmelee.

And He came through. The children's actions and words broke my heart. The deplorable living conditions broke my heart. The alcohol abuse and prevalence of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) broke my heart. The infiltration of gangs, drugs, and violence (which gangs bring to a culture) broke my heart. The sexual/physical abuse rates among Native American children broke my heart. And much more...

I'm not sure where I go from here. I will continue conversing with Jake about this. I plan on doing some research on the underlying issues involved in the condition of America's native polulation. And I will pray.

Shaloam.

have you ever played "simon says" with the devil in the pale moonlight?

I'm sorry for not posting in a couple of days, my computer has gone on the fritz. I'm not sure what it is, but Jake has guaranteed that it's fixable (don't worry Abe). I wouldn't mind if it was dead, as I'm planning on getting one of these babies, but I have a ton of pictures that would be devastating to lose.

Anyway, let's get to a post. Many of you have been praying for our safety. Praise God for answered prayers. Our team has been able to see prayers answered in a very real way this week. We have been blown away by the power and faithfulness of God Almighty. On day one of Kids Klub in Parmelee, we were spiritually and physically attacked by a few of the children. Over the past few days it has progressively gone better and better.

The social hierarchy of the children is very important as there is a very primal pack-mentality to their behavior. The alpha male of the pack is a kid named Jeremy (see pic in previous post). On day one Jeremy was much of the cause of any/all of our danger. Jeremy is a mean, violent, rotten kid. And we love him. Yesterday, Jake and I even were able to lay our hands on him and pray for him with a couple of the other kids. It was awesome.

Well, let me tell you about answered prayers and the title of this post. This one kid, since everyone tends to follow suit in a pack, could have ruined our entire week if he wanted to: two days ago Jeremy showed us all up during a sweet game of "simon says" and yesterday he and one of the other "trouble-makers" made some of the most beautiful stained glass coffee filter crosses that Sami had ever seen during craft time. I'll let those words sink in.

Praise God for answered prayers. I know that these kids, no matter how mean, are just kids. Sometimes I honestly wonder if it's demon-possession, but most likely it's due to their crappy, sexually/physically abusive, unhappy existences. I'm so happy to see God working in this kid's life this week. At the end of this week, he'll probably go back to being alpha male, but this week we've seen glimpses of his lost childhood. Thank you Jesus for that. Jake even mused that as the week has gone by Jeremy seems to be forgetting that he's supposed to be bad. He's still a (k)nucklehead, but praise be to God that he did not ruin this week for everyone.

Shaloam.

Of dust and wolves

Meet Jeremy. His general attitude toward us here, so far, can easily be seen if you look closely enough at this picture (hint: look at his hands). He's a angry kid. I have no clue what pain this kid is dealing with in his life. But he has taken it upon himself to project his anger, frustration, pain onto us. It's late, I'm tired, and there is so much I would love to delve into about this kid; so many issues I see from this single picture. But, it's late and I'm tired.

Here's what I want to say tonight. I am really struggling with Matthew 10:14-16. I'm not sure exactly what these verses are saying. How could the most loving human of all time say, "walk away from those who seem to need love the most." I can't get there, I read the words and process them with my western-thinking mind. And I don't see it. How could Jesus say this? Is this what He is saying?

There is much to say here also of the statement: "I am sending you out like sheep among wolves." Oh man, have I seen this played out to a most disturbingly literal degree this week. I want to discuss this as well. But again, I am tired and it is late.

If you wouldn't mind, please read and reread this passage and weigh in on it for me. Let me know what you think. And, keep praying for us.

Shaloam.

A Chevy Corsica, Tendonitis, and Mean Gene's Pizza are in the Pan

Day one was interesting to say the least. It started great with ample time to play and prepare at the hotel. Pizza Hut lunch buffet never tasted so good. The van ride to Parmelee was hilarious with a rousing game of "Who's in the Pan?" (see pic: Jake and I wanted to make sure everyone could hear us). Our time in Parmelee began spectacularly. We had a lot of fun playing stuck in the mud and kickball, hacky sacks flew, girls painted fingernails, and oh yeah...tons of piggy back rides. Though it was tiring, it was good. We had an average program. I say average because it is pretty much par for the course to have kids climbing, yelling, and running around in a general destructive pattern while a "program" is happening in front of them. It was actually going pretty well.

Until a mud fight broke out. A palpable air of violence quickly came over the entire group as mud led to mud clods, which led to rocks, which led to bigger rocks. It was as if something triggered in their small bodies. Some evil secretion plunged into their veins. Their entire demeanor and appearance changed and contorted into something that wasn't quite human, a predatorial fog thickened. Laughter turned to snarling. Smiling turned to empty glares.

As rocks, some nearly the size of a child's fist, buzzed past my head, I decided to take the troops and run. Covered in mud, bruised and battered, we were literally driven out of town... by children. With voices of reassurance that we would return falling on doubtful ears, we ran.

I'm not ashamed, I had to do what I had to do for the safety of my kids. This day will remain in my memory for a long time. For a while, I may only remember the sounds of stones, but in time I hope to remember one of the funniest games of "Who's in the Pan?" that I've ever played. I hope to remember Molly, Sami, and Jake. I hope to remember our relentlessly loving kids. I hope to remember the good.

low-brow humor reigns supreme

So... today I left with the high schoolers for a week-long mission trip to Parmelee, SD. To put it simply, I am glad I am here...for now. This week does add more than a little stress to my life, as we are now within a month of moving to Chicago. I will desperately miss the mrs., we are pretty dependent on each other lately, as the stress levels are high. The "Rez" doesn't always prove to be the friendliest environment (emotionally, spiritually, or physically). But I am glad I am here. It only took a little low-brow humor for things to be placed into proper perspective.

The day did not start well. I was late getting to church. I forgot some crucial items at church and had to turn around and meet B. Barker half way (thanks man!). It was super windy, making trailer hauling a fight the entire way. We had a tire blow out on the Suburban (you can check out a pic here). All of this adding to my stress levels... and then it happened (timing may be off a little, but this is how I'd like to remember it)... someone farted. It was one of those silent but deadly kind. And I laughed. I laughed my fool head off. I laughed until I cried. I laughed until I was nearly weeping. The smell progressively got worse, and I progressively laughed harder. No one claimed it. Perfect.

And that's why I'm glad I'm here...for now. I needed a good laugh. I need a lot of laughter right now. Thanks for the laugh today Mr./Ms. Anonymous Flatulator. Keep praying for me, I need it. Keep praying for Abs, she needs it. Keep praying for this team of young missionaries, they need it. Pray for the town of Parmelee, SD, they need it. Pray with out ceasing... and laugh... it does a heart good.

Shaloam.

My Chocolate/Peanut Butter Milk Shake Brings All the Boys to the Yard

Last night after Guys'/Girls' Groups (of the college ministry that we are a part of) Abbey and I went to the Drake Diner with a few of the guys from the ministry. The Drake Diner is a place that Abbey and I discovered, only recently, to be high on our individual lists of choice restaurants. It's odd really, as the Drake Diner is nothing special. It is in a less than desirable neighborhood (by most "West-side" standards... sorry guys, it's true, but we live here too). But one thing that the Drake Diner does have going for it is the chocolate/peanut butter milk shake. It was undoubtedly the ice cream treat of choice last night at our table, everyone had one except for Travis...he had the banana split (no pineapple).

As we continue to prepare for the move to the girls' dorm, I keep catching myself appreciating things more, like last night, for instance. Sure, I loved the company, those guys are awesome. But that's obvious, of course I will miss them greatly. But I also found myself appreciating a simple chocolate/peanut butter milk shake from the Drake Diner. I appreciated it even more so today as I attempted to make one for myself at home. It was a disaster. My peanut butter: ice cream: milk ratios were way off. What I ended up with was really cold chocolate milk with frothy peanut butter flavored scum floating on the top.

Dang... I'll miss the Drake Diner.

Apple-sleaze

Upon conclusion of a short shopping trip to one of the more "ghetto" of the malls in the DSM, Abbey and I decided to dine at one of the more "ghetto" of dining establishments in the DSM...Applebee's. We enjoy the grease-bombs every once in a while. Tonight was one of those times. Though the food was delightfully sub-par, the atmosphere was even better.

We were seated in a booth next to a couple of wonderful characters, later I discovered them to be some of the best of America's organized labor. Appearances mean very little to me, I appreciate the creative facial hair, tattoos, and sleeveless shirts; but it was these fine gentlemen's conversation that riveted, disgusted, and caused much laughter at the Mick table. They discussed copulating with plump, Lutheran girls. One of them informed nearly the entire restaurant that his wife found him to be one of the horniest men she had ever come across. But the conversation which caused the most laughter from us is detailed below. I hope you enjoy. For a frame of reference: both men were more than slightly inebriated.
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waitress (placing check on the table)- "Is there anything else I can get you, another soda or maybe some dessert?"

man - "Do I look like I need dessert? I'm stuffed and besides, I'm already a fat little man."

waitress (anticipating affirmation) - "That's alright, I'm a fat little woman."

man (flirtatiously smooth) - "Yeah, but you have nice nails."

waitress (dejectedly glances at her fingernails)
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God bless the U.S.A.....

Misquote of the Morning

Abbey: Wee, Blah, Boo, Duh....What are you doing?
Brandon: I'm trying to avoid eye contact with the crazy person.
Abbey: I'm not crazy, I'm just crazy fun. (misquote)

[in actuality, Abbey's response to my statement is still unknown, but what i heard was much funnier... I'm sure you had to be there. but, I'm glad you weren't as it took place while either or both parties were yet to be fully clothed for the morning]

life in a girls' dorm

On July 15, 2006 my wife and I will pack up our things from our little bungalow in the DSM and move to a one-bedroom apartment located within a girls' dormitory in Chicago, IL. Abbey has accepted a position as a residence supervisor at Moody Bible Institute (thus our reason for residing in a girls' dorm) and I will be pursuing full-time graduate studies. There are plenty of questions to be answered. We are definitely stepping out into the great unknown. I'm sure that the drastic change in scenery, acquaintances, and vocation will provide much fodder for stories. We have created this blog to chronicle our adventures as we begin our "life in a girls' dorm"